Students have a strong history of sparking change and making a difference to their community and further afield. Here’s a snapshot of the campaigns we’ve been working on this year.

Speak Week is an opportunity for students to share their thoughts and feedback on all aspects of being a USW student.

The aim of Active Women's Week was to empower female students to participate in sports and activities.

We collected over 200 gifts kindly donated by staff and students to make sure that no child misses out at Christmas.

For the first time, the USW flag was lowered to allow the LGBT flag to fly, brightening the sky over campus for the whole of History month.

There were puppies, free tea & coffee and a lot of students working tirelessly towards assessments.

Safe Taxi ensures students without money or who find themselves feeling unsafe or vulnerable can get home safely after a night out.

Devolution Week explained all of the devolved areas of the Welsh Assembly through a series of videos released ahead of the 2016 Elections.

Students often feel a huge amount of pressure to find private accommodation during their first term. Our guide helps students make the right choices.

Feedback from Campus Moves Catch Up sessions was collated - good and bad - in order to hold the University to account.

We secured funding from the Big Lottery Fund for 175 individuals to attend Mental Health Awareness and Suicide Prevention training.

It’s very easy for you to feel unable to change things - but you can! So, if you have any ideas on how to improve the student experience, we want to hear from you. Get in touch with your Elected Officers or submit a motion to the Student Council.

OTHER ISSUES

We’ve also worked to address these issues:

Reading Weeks– To lobby the University to reinstate reading weeks where appropriate.

Student Sex Worker Policy – To work alongside the University to help protect and support students involved in sex work.

Gender Neutral Toilets – To lobby the University to develop Gender Neutral Toilets across USW where disabled toilets already exist.

City Campus Shop - ‘Pop up shop’ set-up for City Campus Welcome Week followed by a proposal and research to establish the shop permanently.

Student Artwork Showcase – To support student artwork by showcasing photography in The Zen Bar. This will ‘rotate’ each term to exhibit a range of student work.

Campus Moves Student Compensation – To ensure all students receive the correct compensation that they are entitled to as a result of campus moves.

Frontline Services Workshops – To collaborate with the University on exploring the effectiveness and accessibility of USW frontline services.

Sexual Consent – To inform and educate about sexual consent.

Parking on Treforest Campus – To work with councilors and the University to implement a solution for the lack of parking on the Treforest Campus.

ReFreshers Fair– Encourage engagement in clubs and societies through organising the first USWSU Refreshers Fair.

NATIONAL CAMPAIGNS

In addition to our own campaigns we have also worked on a range of national issues and events:

International Women's Day – International Women’s Day provides us with the opportunity to celebrate the strides we have made towards a more equal society. This year the theme was #PledgeForParity, a campaign that invites both men and women to pledge their commitment to the acceleration of gender parity.

NUS: We Want In– At last year’s National Conference, nearly 95 per cent of conference delegates (made up of elected students and student officers) voted for NUS to campaign for In. The campaign has included a ‘Brexit’ debate on-campus.

Reclaim The Night - Reclaim the Night is an international movement demanding an end to sexual violence, street harassment, and victim blaming. Your SU President joined students and NUS Officers who took to the streets of Cardiff for the march.

National Poetry Day – 8th of October 2015 marked the 21st annual day of its kind with poetry-spouting flash-mobs and impromptu poetry festivals popping up in all kinds of unexpected places across the UK. Take a look at our film here.

We exist to ensure you have the best
possible experience at USW.

We make sure the student body – a collective voice of over 20,000 students - is heard at the highest level.